Despite the recent tailwind that plummeting crude prices has provided, American Airlines is more than a falling oil price story.American Airlines has gone from bankruptcy protection (like many others) in 2011 to merging with US Airlines in 2013 to create the world largest airline carrier. AAL has invested heavily, with its fleet’s average aircrafts age quickly declining, leaving it with one of the most fuel efficient fleets in the industry. The merger created one the best networks in the world and left it with a much better base from which to compete nationally and globally. One of the benefits from its merger is that it has billions of dollars in net operating loss carry forwards, an accounting device that lets a company apply past financial losses to future tax bills. This will leave American Airlines with a much reduced tax rates to pay in future years, which will increase the firm ability to return cash to shareholders. This stands in sharp contrast to the historical industry tendency to increase market share at any cost.Fuel is the largest single cost item for the global airline industry, despite continued improvements in engine and airframe technologies which have dramatically improved fuel efficiency, jet fuel accounts for around a third of operating costs. The recent fall in crude has led to some of the highest profit levels industry wide in 2014 as $0.01 fall in jet fuel equates to $165m in pre-tax profits to the industry.Lower input costs, increasing efficiencies, self-help, barriers to entry, shareholder friendly management and increased volumes in key markets mean American Airlines profitability and thus cash flow generation should be favorable for some time to come.